Suddenly One Summer

Julie James uses familiar tropes but her characters and dialogue are so strong that the result usually rises above the herd of similar contemporary romance novels. Suddenly One Summer is no exception. You've got Ford, investigative journalist (and best friend of Brooke from Love Irresistibly), and Victoria, hotshot divorce lawyer. Victoria ends up as Ford's temporary next door neighbor after a traumatic break-in at her apartment. She thinks he's a promiscuous man-slut. He thinks she's an uptight judgmental bitch. But when they end up working together to help Ford's sister locate the father of her baby, they start to see each other differently.

I love the way James' heroines are always successful at their careers and are never asked to sacrifice professionally to get their happy ending. I also love the snappy dialogue and the tension between hero and heroine that is resolved in love scenes that are passionate but mercifully (to me, at least) brief.

Ford and Victoria are both relationship-averse, and they have valid reasons for their wariness - it's not just a case of “oh, I was dumped once and now I hate all women.” Even more amazingly, James shows Victoria in therapy to address the panic attack symptoms she has encountered as a result of the break-in, and the scenes with the therapist manage to be realistic, touching and often humorous too.

The subplot with Ford's sister takes some unexpected twists and turns, affecting Victoria and Ford's romance at several key points. Nicole doesn't bear much resemblance to James' typical ambitious career women heroines, but I wouldn't mind reading a future book that lets her find more of a happy ever after.

Another clear winner by the always entertaining Julie James.

I received an ARC of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.